With Kendry Morales out for quite some time, it's conceivable that Red Sox third baseman Mike Lowell could be a fit for the Angels. Morales fractured his left ankle while leaping onto home plate to celebrate a walkoff grand slam against the Mariners on Saturday. He is expected to be out until at least September. Lowell, who has played sparingly recently, could be just what the Angels seek, particularly if the Red Sox pick up at least three quarters of his $12 million salary, as they were prepared to do when trying to trade Lowell to Texas last winter.

Red Sox pitcher Josh Beckett expressed frustration over his lower-back, which has forced him to slow down his rehab process. Beckett said he needs to be 100 percent before he picks up a baseball again. He was scheduled to come off the 15-day disabled list on June 3, but that's unlikely given his recent setback. "It's Groundhog Day right now," Beckett said Sunday. "Just trying to get things better."

Red Sox utilityman Bill Hall pitched on Friday night in a rough loss to the Royals, pitching a 1-2-3 ninth inning. Boston lost to Kansas City 12-5 at Fenway Park. Red Sox manager Terry Francona called on Hall to work the ninth and he turned out to be the team's most effective pitcher of the night. He induced three straight groundouts. "I felt good," said Hall. "I hadn't pitched since high school. It was just something, if I ever got the chance, I always wanted to just to see if I still had it. I almost got drafted as a pitcher in high school. I threw pretty hard, so it was fun to get back out there."

The Red Sox have placed outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury back on the disabled list with a rib injury. He came off the disabled list after missing five weeks last Saturday. Boston activated him under the belief that the injury wouldn't worsen, but that he wasn't fully healed. "[They] basically advised me that I needed to be at a further state of healing before I resume play," Ellsbury said. "To this point, right now I really don't have a timeline for when I'm coming back. Just talking with the medical staff, I'm going to do everything I can to get back on the field as soon as possible."

Red Sox starting pitcher Josh Beckett was scheduled to throw a side session on Friday. Beckett has been on the disabled list since May 19 with a lower back strain. "I hope so," manager Terry Francona said before Thursday's game. "Things are backed up a little bit today because of our late arrival. I just went down to check with [pitching] coach [John] Farrell about that, and it's backed up a little bit. So if [Beckett] throws his side [Friday], everything has [gone] really well. If we need to back it up another day or whatever, we will." Beckett can come off the DL on June 3.

David Ortiz's home run trot took 30.59 seconds, longest of any player this season according to the wezen-ball.com website, which features a Tater Trot Tracker. Ortiz claimed he was slowed because umpire Tim Tschida was in his path; the Rays weren't so sure that was a factor. "I was probably a little upset," Rays rookie starter Wade Davis said. "He's been doing it for a while. That's his thing; it's Big Papi. That's him. And I've seen him do it when (the ball) hasn't gone out, either." Rays pitching coach Jim Hickey said he didn't think it was egregious: "He took a little longer to get out of the box than probably most would have liked, but I think his trip around the bases wasn't particularly slow." Rays manager Joe Maddon chose to poke fun at Ortiz, saying the slow pace didn't bother him but showed, "He's not as fast as he used to be." "He ain't fast, so it's not going to be a fast one," Rays SS Jason Bartlett said. "You know, that's him. He doesn't always do it that slow, but he's never fast. I didn't take it any way. He's not going to rub anything in anybody's face ? he's a great guy and he loves playing the game."

Red Sox manager Terry Francona said he doesn't expect the team to make a roster move for a backup catcher. Victor Martinez suffered an injury to his big left toe, but X-rays came back negative. Martinez had to leave Monday's game in the third inning after taking a foul ball off the bat of Tampa Bay's Jason Bartlett in the bottom of the previous inning. "It's painful, but it's a good thing the X-rays came out negative, nothing's broken in there," said Martinez. "We'll see how it feels tomorrow but it was really, really painful."

The Rangers are still interested in Mike Lowell, according to the Boston Globe. "A Rangers official told me last week he'd love to get Lowell in Texas," Nick Cafardo wrote on Sunday. Lowell said last week that he thinks the best decision for both him and the Red Sox would be for him to be released.

Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz may have to take a pay cut in order to remain with the team past this season. Ortiz said last week, "I'm going to be done when I've decided that I'm done." The Boston Globe writes that no matter what happens over the remainder of the season, a pay cut is a necessity. The Red Sox have a $12 million team option on Ortiz's contract.

Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek is denying that the team has any controversy in the clubhouse despite the fact that Boston's pitchers are more productive when he's behind the plate. Daisuke Matsuzaka has an ERA of 11.05 ERA in 14 2/3 innings pitched while Victor Martinez behind the plate. However, his ERA drops to 0.60 in 15 innings pitched to Varitek. "People have to understand one thing: If we start doing that, as a team, you put your starting catcher in an awkward position in that he doesn't get the right days off," Varitek said. "I need to play when (Martinez) needs to not play. It doesn't matter who's on the mound. ... I was fortunate today. Dice was powerful through the zone. ... I need to play when he needs to not play and not when somebody's on the mound."